Arrrrrrg! Loose dogs on "public" land....

[tarafrost]

I was out in the nearby county forest yesterday, since we had gotten 2-3" of white stuff the night before. Still trying to pattern a buck I've spotted on one of my trailcams recently.

Got to one of my spots and was sitting on a stump for an hour or so due to the wind being right. Basically taking a break from a long scouting walk in the bush and thinking I might get lucky since I had gotten a pic of a nice 6-point there a few days ago. This is back a fair ways in the woods.

Get interrupted when one big dog comes running up to say hi, then heads right through my scrape setup. 10 min later, a different dogs goes lopping through.

What you gotta know is the county forests up here are not really public land....it's private land owned by the county, but many public uses (hiking, dog walking, ATV/dirt bike with permit, etc) are allowed by the landowner. However, all forest entrances are posted with signs that state what uses are allowed, and it clearly states dogs must be leashed or controlled. These mutts were neither, since the owners were at least a few 100 meters away and not within sight of the dog. The dogs won't come when called either, since I could hear the owners calling or whistling, with the dogs totally ignoring the recalls. I'm sure these dogs chase deer if they can find them, which is against the law pretty much anywhere in North America and definitely is up here.

Drives me crazy.

Whenever I'm walking my dog in the woods (she's always on a Flexilead and NEVER runs loose) and I encounter other dog walkers with unleashed, unruly dogs that don't come on command, I mention that it's not allowed by the county by-laws and that during hunting season, it's a dangerous thing to do for their dog.

What would you do in this situation?

 

[kyler1945]

I carry out west when hunting for unleashed dogs and humans.

I don’t carry deer hunting usually because I don’t really encounter dogs.

I would never engage in violence with someone’s pet unless it was showing signs of engaging in violence wjth me. If it did I’d kill it and suffer the consequences. But to shoot some strangers dog with a sling shot because it’s being a dog and sniffing the woods is a poor decision. Have you met people? Have you seen how psycho people are about their children-er- I mean dogs?

Statistically speaking, confronting a stranger in the middle of nowhere has been the worst decision a human can make for all of our existence. Please don’t shoot strangers’ dogs with a slingshot. Go find somewhere else to hunt, or carry treats with slow acting laxative in them.

 

[Nutterbuster]

If a dog is within slingshot range, he's already impacted your hunting however he's gonna impact it. So what exactly does hurting him accomplish?

I'd say shooting the owner with the slingshot is more just, given that they're the guilty moral entity in this scenario. But like kyler pointed out, that may come with consequences you don't care for.

 

[kyler1945]

If a dog is within slingshot range, he's already impacted your hunting however he's gonna impact it. So what exactly does hurting him accomplish?

I'd say shooting the owner with the slingshot is more just, given that they're the guilty moral entity in this scenario. But like kyler pointed out, that may come with consequences you don't care for.

I hadn’t considered shooting the owner with the sling shot. I recant my statement, and this is now my recommendation. Please video the incident.

 

[mtsrunner]

Yeah, please don’t hurt a dog that isn’t attacking you. Dogs will be dogs if not controlled by their owners. I just started hunting in Kentucky this year. Just driving around there I can’t believe how many dogs are unleashed. I love my dog too much to put him in harms way.

 

[tarafrost]

carry treats with slow acting laxative in them.

Now that is an interesting suggestion. Won't hurt the dog, but the idiot owners will have to deal with the consequences!

Incidentally, the owners are always far away and not in sight of the dog. That is a big part of the problem.

I do agree that it's the owners that are the culpable party, not the dogs. That is why I try to educate them when I run into them while walking my dog, since what they are doing is unlawful.

 

[JBDaddy]

I'd probably record some video of the dogs running around, and record some video of the owner however far away they are... better if I can record them whistling/calling and the dogs ignoring it - but only if I can record it without the person knowing I'm doing it.

At that point I'd consider the hunt ruined and head to the owner. Not looking for a confrontation, I would try hard not to come across upset, and I'd say something like "I bumped into some other hunters earlier and we chatted to know where to avoid each other's areas - they warned me about seeing dogs running in here and joked (I think?) about wanting to take a shot. I love dogs, and I'd hate for anything awful to happen - figured I'd warn you."

If I could get to the parking lot and see the owner's vehicle, I'd film that, license plate too. And then I'd forward it all to an area conservation officer and request they please warn the person about hunter harassment and running lose dogs.

 

[raisins]

I was out in the nearby county forest yesterday, since we had gotten 2-3" of white stuff the night before. Still trying to pattern a buck I've spotted on one of my trailcams recently.

Got to one of my spots and was sitting on a stump for an hour or so due to the wind being right. Basically taking a break from a long scouting walk in the bush and thinking I might get lucky since I had gotten a pic of a nice 6-point there a few days ago. This is back a fair ways in the woods.

Get interrupted when one big dog comes running up to say hi, then heads right through my scrape setup. 10 min later, a different dogs goes lopping through.

What you gotta know is the county forests up here are not really public land....it's private land owned by the county, but many public uses (hiking, dog walking, ATV/dirt bike with permit, etc) are allowed by the landowner. However, all forest entrances are posted with signs that state what uses are allowed, and it clearly states dogs must be leashed or controlled. These mutts were neither, since the owners were at least a few 100 meters away and not within sight of the dog. The dogs won't come when called either, since I could hear the owners calling or whistling, with the dogs totally ignoring the recalls. I'm sure these dogs chase deer if they can find them, which is against the law pretty much anywhere in North America and definitely is up here.

Drives me crazy.

Whenever I'm walking my dog in the woods (she's always on a Flexilead and NEVER runs loose) and I encounter other dog walkers with unleashed, unruly dogs that don't come on command, I mention that it's not allowed by the county by-laws and that during hunting season, it's a dangerous thing to do for their dog.

What would you do in this situation?

owners are probably snowflakes that think rules are for people and dogs that aren’t special

 

[Patriot38]

If its something that really bothers you and it can't be ignored I would attempt a peaceful conversation with the dog owners. They probably have no clue its even hunting season. People usually bend rules in public places especially when there's typically no one around. If they knew you were hunting in the area and asked them to keep the leash on during season I bet they would. Maybe even leave a note on their car or something or on the trail leading from the parking lot to the woods just to alert them that someone is hunting and please keep pets leashed.

It's a tough spot to be in but thats always part of the public land experience. Just gotta roll with the punches and try to think positive. If that dog was on the other side of the park and bumped a deer into bow/rifle range you would probably be much happier than you are now. Have fun with it and hopefully things turn around in your favor.

 

[Ontariofarmer]

Oh well. Hunting this morning and some hounds running through some public land. My hunt was over and I climb down and head back to the truck and low and behold some friends are hunting coyotes. My friend a says I just saw a buck and four does run by. He says I guess the hounds disturbed the deer.
I hope they at least get the coyotes.
These are good guys on public land. Oh well.


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[tarafrost]

owners are probably snowflakes that think rules are for people and dogs that aren’t special

I've run into more than a few of those type. Lots of "Karens"...and other assorted entitled idiots that think the law does not apply to them.

 

[tarafrost]

If its something that really bothers you and it can't be ignored I would attempt a peaceful conversation with the dog owners. They probably have no clue its even hunting season. People usually bend rules in public places especially when there's typically no one around. If they knew you were hunting in the area and asked them to keep the leash on during season I bet they would. Maybe even leave a note on their car or something or on the trail leading from the parking lot to the woods just to alert them that someone is hunting and please keep pets leashed.

I've had many such chats, but typically only when I'm walking my dog.....not when I'm hunting. I like the idea of printing up some notices and leaving them on parked vehicles. Some of the idiots live locally though....and just don't care about the laws, or that they may be endangering their animals.

 

[Jtaylor]

Deer get chased by coyotes, bobcats and mountain lions here frequently. It'll disrupt your hunt maybe that day or just for a couple hours. I don't let it bother me. It sucks if you have limited hunting time but I consider it all part of the challenge.

 

[sweats]

Personally, I'd tell them it's illegal and advise that it's really unsafe for their dog especially during hunting season. However, be careful to not come off as if you're threatening their dogs. If you have some repeat offenders, you could also record it and turn them in. Enforcement on that tends to vary wildly.

I haven't had much issue with dogs while hunting fortunately, but plenty around the neighborhood where I live. We are in the suburbs and there is a very clear leash law, but some people just don't care. Throw on top of that the stupid people whose dogs get out while they are unloading groceries or working in the yard.

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[tarafrost]

Deer get chased by coyotes, bobcats and mountain lions here frequently. It'll disrupt your hunt maybe that day or just for a couple hours. I don't let it bother me. It sucks if you have limited hunting time but I consider it all part of the challenge.

We have coyotes in our area, though no wild cats. I have no problem with those. I have a friend who hunts 'yotes for local farmers in the area. We also have black bear. Again, no issue with the wild animals...that is part of the forest and expected, and in fact, quite exciting to see if you happen to be hunting and encounter those wild predators!

As sweats said above, my issue is with stupid people or those that just don't care about the laws and usage rules /bylawsthat have been set by the landowner.

Hunting is challenging enough without having to deal with stoopid/ignorant peepul, IMO.

 

[Wolverinebuckman]

Lol, hunting dogs run all over these Kentucky hills! I heard a pack while I was sitting this morning. A lot of these dogs just get turned loose with GPS collars on and found later. I've had owners show up at my door a couple of times now looking for their dogs.

 

[pokem]

I get in trouble when I talk about my procedures of fixing these types of problems.

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[ThereWillBeSpuds]

People hunt deer and hogs with dogs round here and I have not yet encountered a loose dog in the woods.

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[Weldabeast]

Catch the dog and sell it on craigslist....that'll teach em and u can buy new broadheads

 

[jcassell207]

So, funny I am seeing this.......story time

This morning, I ha

I was out in the nearby county forest yesterday, since we had gotten 2-3" of white stuff the night before. Still trying to pattern a buck I've spotted on one of my trailcams recently.

Got to one of my spots and was sitting on a stump for an hour or so due to the wind being right. Basically taking a break from a long scouting walk in the bush and thinking I might get lucky since I had gotten a pic of a nice 6-point there a few days ago. This is back a fair ways in the woods.

Get interrupted when one big dog comes running up to say hi, then heads right through my scrape setup. 10 min later, a different dogs goes lopping through.

What you gotta know is the county forests up here are not really public land....it's private land owned by the county, but many public uses (hiking, dog walking, ATV/dirt bike with permit, etc) are allowed by the landowner. However, all forest entrances are posted with signs that state what uses are allowed, and it clearly states dogs must be leashed or controlled. These mutts were neither, since the owners were at least a few 100 meters away and not within sight of the dog. The dogs won't come when called either, since I could hear the owners calling or whistling, with the dogs totally ignoring the recalls. I'm sure these dogs chase deer if they can find them, which is against the law pretty much anywhere in North America and definitely is up here.

Drives me crazy.

Whenever I'm walking my dog in the woods (she's always on a Flexilead and NEVER runs loose) and I encounter other dog walkers with unleashed, unruly dogs that don't come on command, I mention that it's not allowed by the county by-laws and that during hunting season, it's a dangerous thing to do for their dog.

What would you do in this situation?

So, funny you wrote this.....story time

This morning, I had to help at my job with a testing for new employees for the fire department. I had no intentions in going into the woods because I didn't think I would be done in time. As the morning progressed, we were moving swiftly......so quickly, that we were done by noon! I just so happened to have my stuff in the truck, so I decided why not?

Got to the spot I have been looking at and got changed (public land). I get back, set my sticks, and I am hanging at 12:25.....I was ecstatic because I knew any noise I made going in/setting up, would have "calmed" by prime time......

So there I was, hanging out playing a game on my phone (yeah yeah, I know.....) and I hear a swiftly moving sound coming right toward me! My phone goes into the pocket, get my bow ready and I see a flash or orange.......My first thought was "crap, did I read the season wrong? Should I have orange on? Am I about to get shot"......low and behold, it is this little dog running threw the woods. As he comes towards me, I notice a small buck get up (42 yards away from me, guess he was bedded) and took off! About a minute later, here I see another orange vest walking in the woods.....an upland guy running his dog for rabbit maybe.

He comes 30 yards from me. I got nervous because if the dog alerted, who knows if he would of shot towards me. I whistled and he looked right at me! I threw my hands up, thinking that he would respect the fact I was there first. He sure didn't. So, not only did the dog continue to run all around, he also walked past me......and then came back even closer to me!

Moral of the story. I hunt a lot of public land. This is the first time I have had someone be a complete a$$ to me. I always think I am off the path, or deep enough in that nobody will come.......but, I have been "found" on more occasions then I would expect. We are all using what is free around us because leases are getting to be out of control (at least around me), but we also should respect each other as hunters.